Development Chips Away At Connecticut's Forests

If you were hiking in a state forest infused with lovely fall colors, you might think Connecticut's forests were in top shape. And you would be right — up to a point.

The sylvan expanses look lush and robust. Except, perhaps, when you come to a new subdivision.

That is the paradox of Connecticut's forests, as outdoor writer Steve Grant recently wrote in The Courant. The forests are generally healthy. But they are being threatened by development, as well as by climate change and new invasive insect species. The woodlands are being chipped and whittled away.

Though more than half of the state has tree cover, the problem is the fragmentation or loss of core forests — large, intact woodlands. Since 1985, Connecticut has lost slightly more than 265 square miles of core forest to roads, subdivisions and other forms of development. The core forest land, as of the most recent figures in 2010, totaled 1,389 square miles.

We cannot afford to lose much more of this vital resource. Forests are nature's public works department. They clean the air and water. They provide habitat to animals — some birds only live in deep woods. They provide outdoor recreation and scenic beauty — people rarely go hiking in shopping center parking lots. And trees in core forests are better able to withstand storms and other threats.

The woods got a break when the recession slowed development, but as it slowly ends, suburban sprawl is starting anew.

A major New England preservation initiative that began in 2010, called Wildlands and Woodlands, calls for conserving 70 percent of New England as forest. The program is administered out of Highstead, a forest conservation and education organization based in Redding. The state should mount a coordinated effort to save 70 percent of Connecticut's forests. Losing them is unthinkable.